Prestressed concrete is a form of concrete used in construction.

It is
substantially "prestressed" (compressed) during its fabrication, in a manner that
strengthens it against tensile forces which will exist when in service.[1]
[2]:3�5[3]

This compression is produced by the tensioning of high-strength "tendons" located

within or adjacent to the concrete and is done to improve the performance of the
concrete in service.[4] Tendons may consist of single wires, multi-wire strands or
threaded bars that are most commonly made from high-tensile steels, carbon fiber or
aramid fiber.[1]:52�59 The essence of prestressed concrete is that once the initial
compression has been applied, the resulting material has the characteristics of
high-strength concrete when subject to any subsequent compression forces and of
ductile high-strength steel when subject to tension forces. This can result in
improved structural capacity and/or serviceability compared with conventionally
reinforced concrete in many situations.[5][2]:6 In a prestressed concrete member,
the internal stresses are introduced in a planned manner so that the stresses
resulting from the superimposed loads are counteracted to the desired degree.

Prestressed concrete is used in a wide range of building and civil structures where
its improved performance can allow for longer spans, reduced structural
thicknesses, and material savings compared with simple reinforced concrete. Typical
applications include high-rise buildings, residential slabs, foundation systems,
bridge and dam structures, silos and tanks, industrial pavements and nuclear
containment structures.[6]

First used in the late-nineteenth century,[1] prestressed concrete has developed

beyond pre-tensioning to include post-tensioning, which occurs after the concrete
is cast. Tensioning systems may be classed as either monostrand, where each
tendon's strand or wire is stressed individually, or multi-strand, where all
strands or wires in a tendon are stressed simultaneously.[5] Tendons may be located
either within the concrete volume (internal prestressing) or wholly outside of it
(external prestressing). While pre-tensioned concrete uses tendons directly bonded
to the concrete, post-tensioned concrete can use either bonded or unbonded tendons.
Contents

1 Pre-tensioned concrete
2 Post-tensioned concrete
2.1 Bonded post-tensioning
2.2 Unbonded post-tensioning
2.3 Comparison between bonded and unbonded post-tensioning
3 Tendon durability and corrosion protection
4 Applications
4.1 Building structures
4.2 Civil structures
4.2.1 Bridges
4.2.2 Dams
4.2.3 Silos and tanks
4.2.4 Nuclear and blast-containment structures
4.2.5 Hardstands and pavements
5 Design agencies and regulations
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

Pre-tensioned concrete
three figures; darker green slab is pre-tensioned in lighter green casting bed
Pre-tensioning process
Form for concrete I-beam with tendons in lower portion
Pre-tensioned bridge girder in precasting bed, with single-strand tendons exiting
through the formwork

Pre-tensioned concrete is a variant of prestressed concrete where the tendons are

tensioned prior to the concrete being cast.[1]:25 The concrete bonds to the tendons
as it cures, following which the end-anchoring of the tendons is released, and the
tendon tension forces are transferred to the concrete as compression by static
friction.[5]:7

Pre-tensioning is a common prefabrication technique, where the resulting concrete

element is manufactured remotely from the final structure location and transported
to site once cured. It requires strong, stable end-anchorage points between which
the tendons are stretched. These anchorages form the ends of a "casting bed" which
may be many times the length of the concrete element being fabricated. This allows
multiple elements to be constructed end-to-end in the one pre-tensioning operation,
allowing significant productivity benefits and economies of scale to be realized.
[5][7]

The amount of bond (or adhesion) achievable between the freshly set concrete and
the surface of the tendons is critical to the pre-tensioning process, as it
determines when the tendon anchorages can be safely released. Higher bond strength
in early-age concrete will speed production and allow more economical fabrication.
To promote this, pre-tensioned tendons are usually composed of isolated single
wires or strands, which provides a greater surface area for bonding than bundled-
strand tendons.[5]
Crane manoeuvres concrete plank
Pre-tensioned hollow-core plank being placed

Unlike those of post-tensioned concrete (see below), the tendons of pre-tensioned

concrete elements generally form straight lines between end-anchorages. Where
"profiled" or "harped" tendons[8] are required, one or more intermediate deviators
are located between the ends of the tendon to hold the tendon to the desired non-
linear alignment during tensioning.[1]:68�73[5]:11 Such deviators usually act
against substantial forces, and hence require a robust casting-bed foundation
system. Straight tendons are typically used in "linear" precast elements, such as
shallow beams, hollow-core planks and slabs; whereas profiled tendons are more
commonly found in deeper precast bridge beams and girders.

Pre-tensioned concrete is most commonly used for the fabrication of structural

beams, floor slabs, hollow-core planks, balconies, lintels, driven piles, water
tanks and concrete pipes.
Post-tensioned concrete
four diagrams showing loads and forces on beam
Forces on post-tensioned concrete with profiled (curved) tendon
A dozen parallel cables are individually anchored to an assembly.
Post-tensioned tendon anchorage; four-piece "lock-off" wedges are visible holding
each strand

Post-tensioned concrete is a variant of prestressed concrete where the tendons are

tensioned after the surrounding concrete structure has been cast.[1]:25

The tendons are not placed in direct contact with the concrete, but are
encapsulated within a protective sleeve or duct which is either cast into the
concrete structure or placed adjacent to it. At each end of a tendon is an
anchorage assembly firmly fixed to the surrounding concrete. Once the concrete has
been cast and set, the tendons are tensioned ("stressed") by pulling the tendon
ends through the anchorages while pressing against the concrete. The large forces
required to tension the tendons result in a significant permanent compression being
applied to the concrete once the tendon is "locked-off" at the anchorage.
[1]:25[5]:7 The method of locking the tendon-ends to the anchorage is dependent
upon the tendon composition, with the most common systems being "button-head"
anchoring (for wire tendons), split-wedge anchoring (for strand tendons), and
threaded anchoring (for bar tendons).[1]:79�84
A T-shaped section of bridge being constructed over a river
Balanced-cantilever bridge under construction. Each added segment is supported by
post-tensioned tendons

Tendon encapsulation systems are constructed from plastic or galvanised steel

materials, and are classified into two main types: those where the tendon element
is subsequently bonded to the surrounding concrete by internal grouting of the duct
after stressing (bonded post-tensioning); and those where the tendon element is
permanently debonded from the surrounding concrete, usually by means of a greased
sheath over the tendon strands (unbonded post-tensioning).[1]:26[5]:10

Casting the tendon ducts/sleeves into the concrete before any tensioning occurs
allows them to be readily "profiled" to any desired shape including incorporating
vertical and/or horizontal curvature. When the tendons are tensioned, this
profiling results in reaction forces being imparted onto the hardened concrete, and
these can be beneficially used to counter any loadings subsequently applied to the
structure.[2]:5�6[5]:48:9�10
Bonded post-tensioning
a detached anchor displaying tendon lock-offs
Multi-strand post-tensioning anchor

In bonded post-tensioning, prestressing tendons are permanently bonded to the

surrounding concrete by the in situ grouting of their encapsulating ducting (after
tendon tensioning). This grouting is undertaken for three main purposes: to protect
the tendons against corrosion; to permanently "lock-in" the tendon pre-tension,
thereby removing the long-term reliance upon the end-anchorage systems; and to
improve certain structural behaviors of the final concrete structure.[9]

Bonded post-tensioning characteristically uses tendons each comprising bundles of

elements (e.g. strands or wires) placed inside a single tendon duct, with the
exception of bars which are mostly used unbundled. This bundling makes for more
efficient tendon installation and grouting processes, since each complete tendon
requires only one set of end-anchorages and one grouting operation. Ducting is
fabricated from a durable and corrosion-resistant material such as plastic (e.g.
polyethylene) or galvanised steel, and can be either round or rectangular/oval in
cross-section.[2]:7 The tendon sizes used are highly dependent upon the
application, ranging from building works typically using between 2 and 6 strands
per tendon, to specialized dam works using up to 91 strands per tendon.

Fabrication of bonded tendons is generally undertaken on-site, commencing with the

fitting of end-anchorages to formwork, placing the tendon ducting to the required
curvature profiles, and reeving (or threading) the strands or wires through the
ducting. Following concreting and tensioning, the ducts are pressure-grouted and
the tendon stressing-ends sealed against corrosion.[5]:2
Unbonded post-tensioning
prepared concrete forms with grid of tendons and ducts
after removal of forms, tendons visible emerging from ducts
Unbonded slab post-tensioning. (Above) Installed strands and edge-anchors are
visible, along with prefabricated coiled strands for the next pour. (Below) End-
view of slab after stripping forms, showing individual strands and stressing-anchor
recesses.

Unbonded post-tensioning differs from bonded post-tensioning by allowing the

tendons permanent freedom of longitudinal movement relative to the concrete. This
is most commonly achieved by encasing each individual tendon element within a
plastic sheathing filled with a corrosion-inhibiting grease, usually lithium based.
Anchorages at each end of the tendon transfer the tensioning force to the concrete,
and are required to reliably perform this role for the life of the structure.[9]:1

Unbonded post-tensioning can take the form of:

Individual strand tendons placed directly into the concreted structure (e.g.
buildings, ground slabs), or
Bundled strands, individually greased-and-sheathed, forming a single tendon
within an encapsulating duct that is placed either within or adjacent to the
concrete (e.g. restressable anchors, external post-tensioning)

For individual strand tendons, no additional tendon ducting is used and no post-
stressing grouting operation is required, unlike for bonded post-tensioning.
Permanent corrosion protection of the strands is provided by the combined layers of
grease, plastic sheathing, and surrounding concrete. Where strands are bundled to
form a single unbonded tendon, an enveloping duct of plastic or galvanised steel is
used and its interior free-spaces grouted after stressing. In this way, additional
corrosion protection is provided via the grease, plastic sheathing, grout, external
sheathing, and surrounding concrete layers.[9]:1

Individually greased-and-sheathed tendons are usually fabricated off-site by an

extrusion process. The bare steel strand is fed into a greasing chamber and then
passed to an extrusion unit where molten plastic forms a continuous outer coating.
Finished strands can be cut-to-length and fitted with "dead-end" anchor assemblies
as required for the project.
Comparison between bonded and unbonded post-tensioning

Both bonded and unbonded post-tensioning technologies are widely used around the
world, and the choice of system is often dictated by regional preferences,
contractor experience, or the availability of alternative systems. Either one is
capable of delivering code-compliant, durable structures meeting the structural
strength and serviceability requirements of the designer.[9]:2

The benefits that bonded post-tensioning can offer over unbonded systems are:

Reduced reliance on end-anchorage integrity

Following tensioning and grouting, bonded tendons are connected to the
surrounding concrete along their full length by high-strength grout. Once cured,
this grout can transfer the full tendon tension force to the concrete within a very
short distance (approximately 1 metre). As a result, any inadvertent severing of
the tendon or failure of an end anchorage has only a very localised impact on
tendon performance, and almost never results in tendon ejection from the anchorage.
[2]:18[9]:7
Increased ultimate strength in flexure
With bonded post-tensioning, any flexure of the structure is directly resisted
by tendon strains at that same location (i.e. no strain re-distribution occurs).
This results in significantly higher tensile strains in the tendons than if they
were unbonded, allowing their full yield strength to be realised, and producing a
higher ultimate load capacity.[2]:16�17[5]:10
Improved crack-control
In the presence of concrete cracking, bonded tendons respond similarly to
conventional reinforcement (rebar). With the tendons fixed to the concrete at each
side of the crack, greater resistance to crack expansion is offered than with
unbonded tendons, allowing many design codes to specify reduced reinforcement
requirements for bonded post-tensioning.[9]:4[10]:1
Improved fire performance
The absence of strain redistribution in bonded tendons may limit the impact
that any localised overheating has on the overall structure. As a result, bonded
structures may display a higher capacity to resist fire conditions than unbonded
ones.[11]

The benefits that unbonded post-tensioning can offer over bonded systems are:

Ability to be prefabricated
Unbonded tendons can be readily prefabricated off-site complete with end-
anchorages, facilitating faster installation during construction. Additional lead
time may need to be allowed for this fabrication process.
Improved site productivity
The elimination of the post-stressing grouting process required in bonded
structures improves the site-labour productivity of unbonded post-tensioning.[9]:5
Improved installation flexibility
Unbonded single-strand tendons have greater handling flexibility than bonded
ducting during installation, allowing them a greater ability to be deviated around
service penetrations or obstructions.[9]:5
Reduced concrete cover
Unbonded tendons may allow some reduction in concrete element thickness, as
their smaller size and increased corrosion protection may allow them to be placed
closer to the concrete surface.[2]:8
Simpler replacement and/or adjustment
Being permanently isolated from the concrete, unbonded tendons are able to be
readily de-stressed, re-stressed and/or replaced should they become damaged or need
their force levels to be modified in-service.[9]:6
Superior overload performance
Although having a lower ultimate strength than bonded tendons, unbonded
tendons' ability to redistribute strains over their full length can give them
superior pre-collapse ductility. In extremes, unbonded tendons can resort to a
catenary-type action instead of pure flexure, allowing significantly greater
deformation before structural failure.[12]

Tendon durability and corrosion protection

Long-term durability is an essential requirement for prestressed concrete given its

widespread use. Research on the durability performance of in-service prestressed
structures has been undertaken since the 1960s,[13] and anti-corrosion technologies
for tendon protection have been continually improved since the earliest systems
were developed.[14]

The durability of prestressed concrete is principally determined by the level of

corrosion protection provided to any high-strength steel elements within the
prestressing tendons. Also critical is the protection afforded to the end-anchorage
assemblies of unbonded tendons or cable-stay systems, as the anchorages of both of
these are required to retain the prestressing forces. Failure of any of these
components can result in the release of prestressing forces, or the physical
rupture of stressing tendons.

Modern prestressing systems deliver long-term durability by addressing the

following areas:

Tendon grouting (bonded tendons)

Bonded tendons consist of bundled strands placed inside ducts located within
the surrounding concrete. To ensure full protection to the bundled strands, the
ducts must be pressure-filled with a corrosion-inhibiting grout, without leaving
any voids, following strand-tensioning.
Tendon coating (unbonded tendons)
Unbonded tendons comprise individual strands coated in an anti-corrosion grease
or wax, and fitted with a durable plastic-based full-length sleeve or sheath. The
sleeving is required to be undamaged over the tendon length, and it must extend
fully into the anchorage fittings at each end of the tendon.
 Double-layer encapsulation
Prestressing tendons requiring permanent monitoring and/or force adjustment,
such as stay-cables and re-stressable dam anchors, will typically employ double-
layer corrosion protection. Such tendons are composed of individual strands,
grease-coated and sleeved, collected into a strand-bundle and placed inside
encapsulating polyethylene outer ducting. The remaining void space within the duct
is pressure-grouted, providing a multi-layer polythene-grout-plastic-grease
protection barrier system for each strand.
Anchorage protection
In all post-tensioned installations, protection of the end-anchorages against
corrosion is essential, and critically so for unbonded systems.

Several durability-related events are listed below:

Ynys-y-Gwas bridge, West Glamorgan, Wales, 1985

A single-span, precast-segmental structure constructed in 1953 with
longitudinal and transverse post-tensioning. Corrosion attacked the under-protected
tendons where they crossed the in-situ joints between the segments, leading to
sudden collapse.[14]:40
Scheldt River bridge, Melle, Belgium, 1991
A three-span prestressed cantilever structure constructed in the 1950s.
Inadequate concrete cover in the side abutments resulted in tie-down cable
corrosion, leading to a progressive failure of the main bridge span and the death
of one person.[15]
UK Highways Agency, 1992
Following discovery of tendon corrosion in several bridges in England, the
Highways Agency issued a moratorium on the construction of new internally grouted
post-tensioned bridges and embarked on a 5-year programme of inspections on its
existing post-tensioned bridge stock. The moratorium was lifted in 1996.[16][17]
Pedestrian bridge, Charlotte Motor Speedway, North Carolina, US, 2000
A multi-span steel and concrete structure constructed in 1995. An unauthorised
chemical was added to the tendon grout to speed construction, leading to corrosion
of the prestressing strands and the sudden collapse of one span, injuring many
spectators.[18]
Hammersmith Flyover London, England, 2011
Sixteen-span prestressed structure constructed in 1961. Corrosion from road de-
icing salts was detected in some of the prestressing tendons, necessitating initial
closure of the road while additional investigations were done. Subsequent repairs
and strengthening using external post-tensioning was carried out and completed in
2015.[19][20]
Petrulla Viaduct, Sicily, Italy, 2014
One span of the viaduct collapsed on 7 July due to corrosion of the post-
tensioning tendons.
Genoa bridge collapse, 2018. The Ponte Morandi was a cable-stayed bridge
characterised by a prestressed concrete structure for the piers, pylons and deck,
very few stays, as few as two per span, and a hybrid system for the stays
constructed from steel cables with prestressed concrete shells poured on. The
concrete was only prestressed to 10 MPa, resulting in it being prone to cracks and
water intrusion, which caused corrosion of the embedded steel.

Applications

Prestressed concrete is a highly versatile construction material as a result of it

being an almost ideal combination of its two main constituents: high-strength
steel, pre-stretched to allow its full strength to be easily realised; and modern
concrete, pre-compressed to minimise cracking under tensile forces.[1]:12 Its wide
range of application is reflected in its incorporation into the major design codes
covering most areas of structural and civil engineering, including buildings,
bridges, dams, foundations, pavements, piles, stadiums, silos, and tanks.[6]
Building structures

Building structures are typically required to satisfy a broad range of structural,

aesthetic and economic requirements. Significant among these include: a minimum
number of (intrusive) supporting walls or columns; low structural thickness
(depth), allowing space for services, or for additional floors in high-rise
construction; fast construction cycles, especially for multi-storey buildings; and
a low cost-per-unit-area, to maximise the building owner's return on investment.

The prestressing of concrete allows "load-balancing" forces to be introduced into

the structure to counter in-service loadings. This provides many benefits to
building structures:

Longer spans for the same structural depth

Load balancing results in lower in-service deflections, which allows spans to
be increased (and the number of supports reduced) without adding to structural
depth.
Reduced structural thickness
For a given span, lower in-service deflections allows thinner structural
sections to be used, in turn resulting in lower floor-to-floor heights, or more
room for building services.
Faster stripping time
Typically, prestressed concrete building elements are fully stressed and self-
supporting within five days. At this point they can have their formwork stripped
and re-deployed to the next section of the building, accelerating construction
"cycle-times".
Reduced material costs
The combination of reduced structural thickness, reduced conventional
reinforcement quantities, and fast construction often results in prestressed
concrete showing significant cost benefits in building structures compared to
alternative structural materials.

Some notable building structures constructed from prestressed concrete include:

Sydney Opera House[21] and World Tower, Sydney;[22] St George Wharf Tower, London;
[23] CN Tower, Toronto;[24] Kai Tak Cruise Terminal[25] and International Commerce
Centre, Hong Kong;[26] Ocean Heights 2, Dubai;[27] Eureka Tower, Melbourne;[28]
Torre Espacio, Madrid;[29] Guoco Tower (Tanjong Pagar Centre), Singapore;[30]
Zagreb International Airport, Croatia;[31] and Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi UAE.[32]

ICC tower, Hong Kong

484m 2010

Guoco Tower, Singapore

290m 2016

Sydney Opera House

1973

Kai Tak Terminal

Hong Kong 2013

World Tower, Sydney

230m 2004

Ocean Heights 2, Dubai

335m 2016

Eureka Tower, Melbourne

297m 2006
 Torre Espacio, Madrid
230m 2008

Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi

18� lean 2010

Civil structures
Bridges

Concrete is the most popular structural material for bridges, and prestressed
concrete is frequently adopted.[33][34] When investigated in the 1940s for use on
heavy-duty bridges, the advantages of this type of bridge over more traditional
designs was that it is quicker to install, more economical and longer-lasting with
the bridge being less lively.[35][36] One of the first bridges built in this way is
the Adam Viaduct, a railway bridge constructed 1946 in the UK.[37] By the 1960s,
prestressed concrete largely superseded reinforced concrete bridges in the UK, with
box girders being the dominant form.[38]

In short-span bridges of around 10 to 40 metres (30 to 130 ft), prestressing is

commonly employed in the form of precast pre-tensioned girders or planks.[39]
Medium-length structures of around 40 to 200 metres (150 to 650 ft), typically use
precast-segmental, in-situ balanced-cantilever and incrementally-launched designs.
[40] For the longest bridges, prestressed concrete deck structures often form an
integral part of cable-stayed designs.[41]
Dams

Concrete dams have used prestressing to counter uplift and increase their overall
stability since the mid-1930s.[42][43] Prestressing is also frequently retro-fitted
as part of dam remediation works, such as for structural strengthening, or when
raising crest or spillway heights.[44][45]

Most commonly, dam prestressing takes the form of post-tensioned anchors drilled
into the dam's concrete structure and/or the underlying rock strata. Such anchors
typically comprise tendons of high-tensile bundled steel strands or individual
threaded bars. Tendons are grouted to the concrete or rock at their far (internal)
end, and have a significant "de-bonded" free-length at their external end which
allows the tendon to stretch during tensioning. Tendons may be full-length bonded
to the surrounding concrete or rock once tensioned, or (more commonly) have strands
permanently encapsulated in corrosion-inhibiting grease over the free-length to
permit long-term load monitoring and re-stressability.[46]
Silos and tanks

Circular storage structures such as silos and tanks can use prestressing forces to
directly resist the outward pressures generated by stored liquids or bulk-solids.
Horizontally curved tendons are installed within the concrete wall to form a series
of hoops, spaced vertically up the structure. When tensioned, these tendons exert
both axial (compressive) and radial (inward) forces onto the structure, which can
directly oppose the subsequent storage loadings. If the magnitude of the prestress
is designed to always exceed the tensile stresses produced by the loadings, a
permanent residual compression will exist in the wall concrete, assisting in
maintaining a watertight crack-free structure.[47][48][49][50]:61
Nuclear and blast-containment structures

Prestressed concrete has been established as a reliable construction material for

high-pressure containment structures such as nuclear reactor vessels and
containment buildings, and petrochemical tank blast-containment walls. Using
prestressing to place such structures into an initial state of bi-axial or tri-
axial compression increases their resistance to concrete cracking and leakage,
while providing a proof-loaded, redundant and monitorable pressure-containment
system.[51][52][53]:585�594

Nuclear reactor and containment vessels will commonly employ separate sets of post-
tensioned tendons curved horizontally or vertically to completely envelop the
reactor core. Blast containment walls, such as for liquid natural gas (LNG) tanks,
will normally utilise layers of horizontally-curved hoop tendons for containment in
combination with vertically looped tendons for axial wall prestressing.
Hardstands and pavements

Heavily loaded concrete ground-slabs and pavements can be sensitive to cracking and
subsequent traffic-driven deterioration. As a result, prestressed concrete is
regularly used in such structures as its pre-compression provides the concrete with
the ability to resist the crack-inducing tensile stresses generated by in-service
loading. This crack-resistance also allows individual slab sections to be
constructed in larger pours than for conventionally reinforced concrete, resulting
in wider joint spacings, reduced jointing costs and less long-term joint
maintenance issues.[53]:594�598[54] Initial works have also been successfully
conducted on the use of precast prestressed concrete for road pavements, where the
speed and quality of the construction has been noted as being beneficial for this
technique.[55]

Some notable civil structures constructed using prestressed concrete include:

Gateway Bridge, Brisbane Australia;[56] Incheon Bridge, South Korea;[57] Roseires
Dam, Sudan;[58] Wanapum Dam, Washington, US;[59] LNG tanks, South Hook, Wales;
Cement silos, Brevik Norway; Autobahn A73 bridge, Itz Valley, Germany; Ostankino
Tower, Moscow, Russia; CN Tower, Toronto, Canada; and Ringhals nuclear reactor,
Videbergshamn Sweden.[51]:37

Gateway Bridge
Brisbane, Aust.

Incheon Bridge
South Korea

Autobahn A73
Itz Valley, Germany

Ostankino Tower
Moscow, Russia

CN Tower
Toronto, Canada

Norcem silos
Brevik, Norway

Roseires Dam
Ad Damazin, Sudan

Wanapum Dam
Washington, US

LNG tanks
South Hook, Wales

Ringhals nuclear plant

Videbergshamn, Sweden
Design agencies and regulations

Worldwide, many professional organizations exist to promote best practices in the

design and construction of prestressed concrete structures. In the United States,
such organizations include the Post-Tensioning Institute (PTI) and the
Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI).[60] Similar bodies include the
Canadian Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (CPCI),[61] the UK's Post-
Tensioning Association,[62] the Post Tensioning Institute of Australia[63] and the
South African Post Tensioning Association.[64] Europe has similar country-based
associations and institutions.

It is important to note that these organizations are not the authorities of

building codes or standards, but rather exist to promote the understanding and
development of prestressed concrete design, codes and best practices.

Rules and requirements for the detailing of reinforcement and prestressing tendons
are specified by individual national codes and standards such as:

European Standard EN 1992-2:2005 � Eurocode 2: Design of Concrete Structures;

US Standard ACI318: Building Code Requirements for Reinforced Concrete; and
Australian Standard AS 3600-2009: Concrete Structures.